Haunted Stadium
by SharanMcQuack
Summary: A ghost is delaying the reconstrution of one' of Mr. Mcduck's "stadiums". Launchpad and Mr. McDuck investigate.


The Haunted "Stadium"  
By Sharan McQuack, Launchpad's wife.

This one stars Mr. McDuck! Now how'd THAT happen?  
(I can't see the point of writing stories just like the ones Disney/Gemstone is already writing. If I wanted THAT, it'd be easier to just buy them!)  
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Mr. McDuck had bought up an old abandoned movie theatre that had been empty for too long because it had been granted landmark status. It was badly in need of fixing up, yet any owner could not fix it too much without getting in trouble for changing it. They couldn't just tear it down, neither.

Mr. McDuck intended to turn it into a family sports bar of sorts. Live sporting events: baseball, football, basketball, soccer, tennis, etc. games would be shown on the old movie screens, telecasted live. The same refreshments one can buy at a stadium would be served, except beer. No liquor license to pay for, no rowdy drunks to deal with. The tickets cost about the same as a movie ticket.(1)

But reconstruction of the place was delayed time and again by a ghost. A white, mist-like, moaning, groaning ghost! Mr. McDuck yelled at his workmen for talking such nonsense and by being scared by such nonsense...until he saw it himself! A whitish misty shape right it front of him...he tried to grab it, but nothing solid was there! Yet he saw it, heard it!

At first, he was scared. Then, it was a case of: "I'll be scared later, right now I'm too mad!"

"What are you? What kind of trick is this? I don't believe in ghosts!" Mr. McDuck screamed.

And Mr. McDuck waved his cane right THUR the apparition. Then it disappeared.

"Hmfph. Ghosts. Bah, humbug!" Mr. McDuck muttered. (2)

He said nothing about what he had seen. He was too embarrassed and too convinced it was some sort of trick by somebody who wanted to prevent him from restoring the place.

Soon, Launchpad was delivering stuff to the site. And he got an earful from the nervous workmen. Then Launchpad saw the thing. He stared at it, shocked.

"Help me! Help me! I'm stuck!" it said.

"What...who are you? Can I help?" Launchpad asked it.

But then, the other workmen saw it. And saw Launchpad talking to it.  
"Hey, what are doing? Making friends with THAT?" they asked, angrily.  
The ghost had scared them and had delayed their work.

"I'm just trying to find out what it wants so it'll go away! I never hurts to try and talk FIRST." Launchpad replied.

But the ghost disappeared, as if the workmen scared IT off!

Launchpad had a talk with Mr. McDuck after this.

"Mr. McDee, did YOU see the ghost?" Launchpad asked.

"Ghost? What ghost? What nonsense are you talking about NOW, Launchpad?" Mr. McDuck demanded.

"Yup, you've seen it, all right. So did I. Ever think it could be a real ghost?" Launchpad asked.

"There's no such thing as ghosts!" Mr. McDuck sneered." It HAS to be some sort of trick to keep me from restoring this old place!"

"WHY would somebody WANT to do that? This place was empty for years before you bought it! And this is a new idea you're trying here! " Launchpad said.

"True. It is a gamble..it might not turn a profit...and anybody who wanted the place had plenty of time to buy it before I did..." Mr. McDuck admitted.

" I KNOW the simplest explanation is that somebody doesn't want you to fix this place up- but I can't figure out WHY. YOU can't figure out why! We've seen genies, Yeti, Leprechauns...why not a real ghost? I saw one, once...twice, now! I think you should keep an open mind." Launchpad commented.

"OK, OK. But forgive me if I don't keep my mind so open my brains fall out. What do we do then?" Mr. McDuck asked.

"Stay here overnight. Try to talk to it. If it's a fake, maybe we can figure out who's behide it and why. If it's real, maybe we can free it...put it to rest." Launchpad suggested.

So they did. Once the workmen were gone for the day, the ghost appeared again.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Mr. McDuck demanded.

" I'm stuck! Help me!" said the "ghost".

It sounded so sad and alone Mr. McDuck felt sorry for it.

"What do you mean?" Mr. McDuck asked, softly now.

"I'm an explorer from another dimension! My name's Jim Corr (3) I was trying to teleport into this dimension, only I sort of got stuck halfway. I ended up ghostlike- in an abandoned building! When I tried to leave the building to ask for help, I started to disappear altogether! Then, workmen came in here- I tried to ask them for help, but I only scared them off. At first by accident, then on purpose- I was afraid they would destroy the device that was supposed to bring me here. It arrived first. Lord knows what would happen to me if it was destroyed!" Jim explained.

"Where is this devise?" Launchpad asked.

"I'll show you. Follow me." Jim replied.

And Jim led them to another room where a device that looked a lot like a portable radio was in the middle of an otherwise empty floor.

Mr. McDuck picked it up to exam it. Jim started to fade.

"Hey, Mr. McDee- look at Jim!" Launchpad warned.

Mr. McDuck automatically walked towards Jim and Jim firmed up a bit.  
"Aha! Like the radio it resembles, it needs to be tuned in!" Mr. McDuck said.

"Argh! And there was nobody here to tune it! And they wouldn't know to tune it if there was!" Jim yelled, frustrated." The middle knob adjusts the tuning- even if it wasn't supposed to need adjusting once it got here!"

Mr. McDuck fiddled with the middle knob and fiddled with the antenna until Jim solidified all the way.

"Thank you! I couldn't go home until after I arrived here all the way! If you don't mind, I think I'll just go home now. I'll tape a note on the devise to my wife, its inventor, so she'll know to adjust it so I can get home safely. I wonder why she didn't get worried and come after me?" Jim explained.

And Jim sent the devise, with a note well taped to it home. A few minutes later, Jim faded again.

"I'm going home this time! Thanks!" Jim said.

A few minutes later, a note appeared, which read:

"I made it. Time is different in my dimension. Only a few minutes had past there, so my wife wasn't worried yet." Jim.

The End.

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(1) I'd LOVE if SOMEBODY would do that with the old empty movie theatre at Main Street Flushing on Northern Blvd. Don't look at ME, I don't have the money and don't know how to do it!

(2) With a first name like "Scrooge" he probably HATES "A Christmas Carol" as much I, with a maiden name like Porper, hate "The Prince and the Pauper" .

(3) I named him after Jim Corrigan, the Spectre.


End file.
